15 Things......

That thrill me....

1. Brinkley
2. Dishes
3. Shopping trips with my mom
4. Snow
5. Grey's Anatomy
6. DVD Box sets
7. Christmas Carols
8. Puppies
9. Babies--especially foreign ones
10. All things Baylor (except for class)
11. Pay day!
12. Doing Random Acts of Kindness
13. Languages
14. Baking
15. Spending time with my boys

Things That Make Me Go "Boo!!!"

1. Monday mornings
2. The bus driver that blasts the heat and causes it to be hot and stuffy on the bus
3. Breaking in new shoes
4. People that can't get their own life straight and try to rule yours
5. Fat Free Hot Dogs
6. Wal Mart (ok, this is really my number one!)
7. Houston Traffic
8. Manipulative old women
9. Working in the yard
10. Snakes
11. Meddlers
12. Fanny packs
13. Salesmen
14. Unsolicited opinions and advice
15. Warm climate

No Room In the Inn

I'm a sucker. There is no denying it, so I'll just fess up and admit it. I'm a sucker. I'm REALLY a sucker for certain things---mainly four legged furry ones and ones without a home. Yesterday after grocery shopping, I came home, grabbed the Beag and took him to Petsmart. He was so excited to go he could have killed me with his tail. We got him brushed and he got a little mani pedi while we were there. As I was waiting for him to get all glammed up, I looked around the store. Lo and behold, it was pet adoption day. I can normally play with and pet the little ones without too much of a problem, but yesterday was different. There he was---a BEAUTIFUL blue-eyed Australian Shepherd named Percy ( I wasn't overly thrilled with the name, but the dog was fantastic). He was so sweet, gentle, and playful---just perfect. I asked the volunteer about his history, this is when I turned to jello. Percy was not a stray that was living a better life in the shelter than on the streets. His family lost their home in Hurricane Ike and they had to surrender him because they had no place to keep him. This is a dog that had people---he had a treat jar and a couch, probably had a leash and his favorite toys all at his disposal.
This dog had a life, and by the way he acted, it was probably a good life. I couldn't take it. I was melting fast, faster, and before I knew it I was taking Brink over to see how they responded to each other. I called Joe, he reminded me of all of the reasons I couldn't get this dog. Its not that I WANTED another dog, I could go either way...its that I think my heart broke into a million little pieces at the thought of this little guy that had a life and was now slummin' it in the shelter.
At the end of the trip to Petsmart I came home with just my lil chunk, the Beag. It was so bad after I got home that I had to take a nap to keep from going back for Percy (who would have to be renamed something a little more modern and fun). I thought about going by the shelter today just to see if Percy was still there (if he was, it would be a sign). Apparently the fact that the Today show did a segment on dog adoptions today was not sign enough--- I decided that I didn't really want a divorce in 2009, so I stayed out of the shelter. My dad was encouraging this potential puppy adoption and my mom was on Joe's side (just something to note). My parents ended up coming to play this afternoon and as we were walking around the mall they made things worse----
Next weekend my parents' church is having an International Children's Choir. They are hosting two kids for two nights. One of the boys is from Nepal and one is from Uganda. We were making plans for something fun to do with them on Saturday, when my mom casually mentioned that these kiddos are orphans. ARE YOU KIDDING ME????? There are two things I'm uber passionate about---pregnancies/babies and orphans (in no particular order). Not only am I in love with the thought of adopting, but I so desperately want to adopt kids from impoverished countries that it hurts. So now, I have a dog that has broken my heart, and two kids I will spend time with next weekend that I will want to bring home too. I'm strong enough to leave the dog, but I don't know that I'm strong enough to leave the orphans. It would be great to get kids that are already potty trained....But, as Joe keeps reminding me....there is no room in the inn (there really is, I could make plenty of space!). For now we remain a family of three...

Give me two pina coladas.....

You know when a President goes into office they look MUCH younger than they do when they leave---or even after the first year??? I absolutely feel that way this week. I feel like if you took a look at me today you would think I'd aged about 10 years in a week. This has been such a stressful week! We underwent MAJOR lay offs this week and there will be more next week. Our team hadn't heard anything and was hoping that no news was good news. And, in large part, we had let some of our guard down yesterday. All of the other departments knew what they were going to have to do lay off wise for a week or more. Our team is very small and we had cut our budget by over 20%, so we thought we might get spared this time. We took our first hit this morning and it was a big one that will cause a major re-org of several departments. It amazes me how much these things can impact people---physically, emotionally, spiritually and psychologically we are all a mess. Our company is large and stable, I can't even begin to imagine what other companies are going through!

Oh how I love 3 day weekends

I love three day weekends. I think they are the greatest thing ever. Friday morning I drove in to work so that I could go to my parents' house. After a quick dinner with my parents, I went to see Linda. Linda is my super fabulous, amazingly wonderful friend and hair dresser. Linda and I had a great time catching up and she covered up my gray, trimmed up my weave and cut bangs. I have been toying with the idea of bangs for about the past year, but never wanted to bite the bullet. I haven't had bangs since about 5th grade. Bangs these days aren't quite what they were in the 90s though (thank goodness)!!!

Saturday mom and I talked my dad into going shopping with us. We went shoe shopping, had lunch at Chuy's (to die for), and then went to the mall and the Container Store. After a fun day with my 'rents, I came home to make some desserts for a fundraiser at church. When I got home, I had one sick puppy that resulted in 3 hours at the Emergency Vet Clinic. B always seems to get sick after hours or on the weekends---which of course costs 3 times as much as the regular vet. Brinkley and I were up all night Saturday. I got my desserts made and went to church yesterday morning. The teen fundraiser was great and thanks to Lindsay, my desserts were a hit. After church I had a quiet afternoon and a great chat with my sister in law and super cute niece.

Today I hit the grocery store and am making some baked ziti. Joe is working tonight and I have a board meeting at the pregnancy center. All in all, its been a good weekend. Tomorrow will start another very stressful week at work (more lay offs to come). Good thing I'm not the One in charge!

And the winner is....

I LOVE this time of year---okay, not really. I think this is a depressing time of year. BUT, I do love the award shows. People's Choice, Golden Globe, SAG, and of course the Academy Awards. I adore all of the pre-show and post-show dish on who wore what and how horrible or wonderful the choices were. I never really care about who wins, I just love the fashion (and lack there of!). E! Live from the Red Carpet here I come!

What a week...

This week feels eternally long! Everyone is back at work and things are crazy busy. On top of all that, my company is beginning to talk about "restructuring." Funny how they will never say "lay off"--they always come up with an alternate term. The last major round of lay offs they called a "RIF" (Reduction In Force). This time its going to be restructure and consolidate. Apparently there is a big announcement tomorrow morning about our Market Areas merging....and now it starts.....

Sunday Afternoon Blues

Another weekend has passed and I have another bout of "Sunday Blues." Joe and I are both working days this week, so there is much to do this afternoon to prepare for the week ahead. Truthfully, this will be the first 5 day week I've worked in almost a month. I've definitely worked 40+ hour weeks, but I was doing it in 3 or 4 day increments before the holidays so that I could take Joe to and from appointments and procedures.

We found a new shopping place yesterday, it is another one of the outdoor centers that are becoming wildly popular around here. It has a nice stand alone Macy's on one end and a stand alone Dillards on the other, lots of eateries and a variety of little shops. While we were there scoping it out yesterday (before going to a movie), Joe got called into work. He ended up having to work all night, which was a bummer. I found plenty to do, but its always a bummer to have an unexpected interruption to the weekend.
This week starts some long anticipated (okay, dreaded) changes at work. If I could just fast forward through tomorrow that would be fabulous! Oh Sunday Blues!!!